enjoyed this Nora Roberts book, very different from anything of hers I have read in the past, but I can't wait for book 2. I loved how all the different threads weaved together and I enjoyed the majority of the characters, obviously you have the bad guys who we aren't meant to like. I thought the concept of different people getting 'gifts' or 'powers' was an interesting take on the normal dystopian story and made things interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Australia for a copy in return for an honest and voluntary review

I really wanted to like this book, however, it simply wasn't believable. The virus didn't seem to act scientifically, and the 'magick' elements damaged the story further. One of my favourite books previously was 'Station Eleven', and it accomplished so much, especially compared to this.

I really enjoy the author's other works, and was surprised that I wasn't able to immerse myself in the story as I can in her others - some which are more than capable of making the 'science' seem possible (such as her In Death series).

I won't be posting my review online (just here), as I hope it's significantly re-worked between now and being published.

It’s the end of the world as we know it…

OK, first up, this is not my normal type of read. I am a romance reader, and Year One was not romantic at all. A virus that makes you hurl your guts up till you die is not my idea of fun and games. Watching people die because evil invaded the world, was hardly a party. Sure, I knew I’d be seeing the end of the world, but come on, it’s Nora Roberts. I kind of hoped that there’d be a little hearts aflutter and sweet nothings, but unfortunately, that would be a BIG NOOOOOO!!

Look, it wasn’t all doom and gloom…OK…it was mostly doom and gloom. But, there were some parts that let in the light. We meet some interesting characters along the way and we see strength in people who didn’t even know they had it in them.

For me, Year One was all about reflecting on ME and how I would handle the world coming to an end. How would I feel knowing that with a cough, it could be the start of my end? Would I be able to go on if all of my loved ones were gone? Could I survive without modern luxuries? Is there a chance I’d be pointing the finger at someone hoping they’d take the blame for my sorrow? Should I just turn the page and start anew? I just don't know. In the end, I decided that I didn’t want to think about it and I hoped that I’d be dead and buried before something like this hit our world.

Now, I can’t really judge this against other stories of the like because I haven’t really read many books like this one. I found the beginning thoroughly engaging. I wanted to see how the world went bad and what caused it. While the middle still held my interest, I was confused with the swapping and changing of our lead characters. It all comes together eventually, but the jumping made it harder to follow. The ending, well, I can honestly say that I was a little underwhelmed. Yeah, I know this is the first book in the series, but I felt like there was no clear path to where we were heading. What am I sticking around for? Who’s left? Who’s path am I supposed to be desperate to follow?

Look, it’s Nora Roberts, so it’s still bloody good, but it’s definitely not what I was hoping for. I wanted to see at least one of the couples together, living, loving and growing after The Doom. What we get are sparks that flicker, fizzle, flutter and flash and maybe even ignite. Unfortunately, we don't see the ignite and not even sure they stayed alight. Some of the lights go out and we’re left with darkness, heartbreak and loss.

This is not a light and fluffy read. It’s pretty dark and depressing. Do not go in thinking you’ll meet a couple and follow their journey towards a new beginning because you’ll be disappointed. If you start Year One with an open mind, knowing that it’s not romance, you may find the journey interesting.

Not a winner but definitely not a loser either. I read the whole thing and even though it took me longer than normal, it was still interesting.

Stacey is Sassy, received a complimentary copy of this story. The copy provided is not the final copy and may be subject to edits and changes.

Like anyone else, I do enjoy a good dystopian or apocalyptic novel. This was no different. I loved the concept, the plague, the touch of magical realism.

I love Nora Roberts and all her genre fiction titles, from romance to futuristic crime to fantasy and suspense - so I'm a fan. Year One did not disappoint. I'm not hugely keen on dystopian apocalyptic end of world as we know it tales, but this one had a twist. It added the fantasy element I enjoy and kept me reading

After 80 per cent of the world's population succumbs to a deadly virus and its aftermath. Human beings react typically, with groups who are kind, supportive and happy to start from scratch and others who let their dark personalities rule and creat anarchy and inflict pain.

It's good versus evil stuff - not a unique premise - but a strong foundation for a trilogy (hoping it's a trilogy, as it's going to be hard waiting for the next two books as it is!).

If you're not keen on fantasy or the apocalypse you probably won't enjoy this as much as I did, but Nora Roberts is a consumate storyteller, takes you into people's lives so you get to know them really well, while weaving a plausible and gripping tale.

Enjoyed it - a lot!

~I recieved an e-galley from Netgalley and Hatchette Australia in exchange for my honest thoughts. This in no way impacts my ability to provide an honest review. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this novel~

2.5 stars

I was really excited to read this book - the synopsis was really promising and I usually love stories like this one but it just didn't do it for me. I couldn't get into the writing style and I just couldn't get invested in the story.

There were some formatting issues, which could have been because it was an ebook, that hindered the reading experience for me. It was really difficult to tell where chapters ended and began and it was difficult at time to tell who was speaking and to keep up with conversations.

While reading I felt like there was more 'telling' than 'showing' happening and this caused me to not be as invested as I would have liked in the story. I understand that being the first book in a series requires world-building and establishing the characters and story but unfortunately this just fell a little short for me.

This was certainly different than other books by this author, much darker. It took me a while to get into it, but I was so invested in the story the further I got.
Nora Roberts is a master storyteller and I'm rarely disappointed, I'm glad she took a fresh new direction. There were a lot of different characters and my head stopped spinning when they finally all connected in one place. Just when I was lulled into security BANG she about faced and there were heart stopping moments.
Brilliant fantasy tale, I thoroughly enjoyed it and can't wait to see where else this new world goes.

When Nora Roberts first spoke of writing a fantasy series I was immediately intrigued.
I'm a huge lover of the fantasy genre and have been reading Nora Roberts books since I was fourteen years old.

Nora Roberts is a prolific romance writer - one of the reigning queens of the genre - and also known for her ongoing sci-fi/detective In Death series that she writes under the pen name J.D.Robb.

The one thing that both these genres (or at least the books that Nora Roberts writes in these genres) is that for the most part, the books in the fantasy and sci-fi/detective genre have a happy ever after, happy for now or a satisfactory ending (in that - the bad guy is captured and put away, etc).
Whereas, in fantasy, as those who write and read the genre can tell you, not all fantasy books, especially epic fantasy books have happy endings.

So I was very curious to see what Nora Roberts would do in the fantasy genre and how the story would play out and I was absolutely thrilled when I was given the chance to read and review an advanced copy of Year One.

So what can I tell you about Year One?
Any lovers of fantasy, dystopian fantasy, or paranormal romance/fantasy romance - read it!

This book completely absorbed me and drew me in.
I was hooked within the first few pages and stayed up reading way, way longer than I should have - ok - I admit it! - I maybe didn't sleep at all! - Mainly because I wanted to read just one more page, and then just one more, until the book was finished.

I am, even now, still feeling the residual effects of a book hangover and am in that mental stage where I don't really want to read anything else yet but merely want to revel and think about the characters and world that I had just been immersed within.

I am not going to tell you anything that happened in the book as I believe in keeping reviews as spoiler free as possible, but I will tell you that Year One , reads like many of Nora Roberts books.

It has the same somewhat lyrical and poetic style of description and imagery as many of her previous works do. The characters and world come to vivid, beautiful life and you have the sense when you're reading - that even if you didn't know the authors name - you would still know that you were reading a Nora Roberts book.

No one writes quite like Nora Roberts.

What I loved the most about this book and the one thing that I am going to take away from it and think about; is that, even though this is a fantasy book, a fictional story, it gave me a sense of hope and reminded me that even in the darkest of times - you can find flashes of light, sparks of courage and bravery, little glimpses of the beauty and strength of the human spirit.

Thank you to Hachette Australia and Netgalley for providing me with an arc of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book with its many ups and downs and surprises and I'm already eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.
I can't wait to see what happens next and I highly recommend reading this book.

This is an entirely different read for me. I found the book to be quite slow in the beginning but about 30% of the way through it started to get really good and I have to say by the end I was not wanting it to end.

There are so many characters that make it such an interesting read, love stories, tragedies, bloodshed, this book does have a bit of everything. Nora Roberts has done a great job of giving everyone their own parts in the story and I am hoping for much more of them in the next book, which I definitely hope won't be too far away.

Thank you to Netgalley and Hachette Australia for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Intriguing and confronting.
A fascinating story from a gifted writer which makes me wonder where this saga will travel to next.
I was very excited to have the opportunity to read this book created by Nora Roberts set in a post-apocalyptic world. Ms Roberts always creates characters that live and breathe the world they are moving through inviting you to travel the roads with them. This book is no different except I'm not sure I want to be traveling these roads. It is a dark dark time when humans succumb to a virus that leaves billions dead and many changed into beings that dwell in fantasy novels.

While I have given it five stars, I do want to take back half a star if I don't get to see some of the characters again who established a wonderful village of like-minded people (well most like-minded) rebuilding amidst the chaos. They take a back seat for awhile to the central character, Lana, is a very engaging woman with remarkable powers but I do like what the others tried to establish in a somewhat bleak world.

In some ways, it is a fable for the times we live in - the need for tolerance and acceptance. I absolutely loved every page and held my breath frequently as characters found their way to the ending. Don't miss this book - it is the beginning of a wonderful series I'm sure.

Nora Roberts first book in the apocalyptic and dystopian genre Year One was a good read. I liked the story and the direction and found myself engaged from beginning to end

Quite an enjoyable end of the world series. Looking forward to bk#2. Quite disturbing how some of the survivors behave, humans can be terrible.